Key Points
- WD Red Plus and WD Red Pro are two reliable NAS hard drives optimized for different environments and user needs.
- WD Red Plus is suitable for SMB NAS systems in a 24×7 environment, while WD Red Pro is targeted towards power users and businesses with rapidly growing data.
- The key differences between WD Red Plus and Pro include capacity, disk speed, power efficiency, warranty, and noise level.
- WD Red Pro is recommended over WD Red Plus for NAS storage setups due to its higher capacities, faster disk speed, longer lifespan, extended warranty, and superior power efficiency.
If you’re looking for reliable NAS hard drives, Western Digital offers two excellent options: WD Red Plus and WD Red Pro.
Although both hard drives are optimized for RAID configurations, they cater to different environments and user needs. If you find yourself torn between the two, understanding their key features is crucial.
In this article, we’ll explore the differences between WD Red Plus and Pro, helping you make a well-informed decision for your specific requirements.
Let’s get started!
WD Red Plus vs. Pro: Side-by-Side Comparison
| Plus | Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Use | SMB NAS systems in a 24×7 environment | Power users that work with rapidly growing data volumes and require an enterprise-grade solution |
| Price | $62.99 | $84.99 |
| Maximum Drive Bays | 8 bays | 24 bays |
| Workload Rate Limit | Up to 180 TB/yr | Up to 300 TB/yr |
| Capacity | 1-14 TB | 2-22 TB |
| Transfer Rate | Up to 150 MB/s | Up to 164 MB/s |
| Disk Speed | 5,400 RPM | 7,200 RPM |
| Warranty | 3-year limited warranty | 5-year limited warranty |
- 4TB
- 5,400 RPM
- SATA 6 Gb/s
- CMR
- 256MB cache
- 3.5 inches
- 2TB
- 7,200 RPM
- SATA 6 Gb/s
- CMR
- 64MB cache
- 3.5 inches
WD Red Plus vs. Pro: What’s the Difference?
WD Red Plus hard drives are optimized for SMB NAS systems operating in a 24×7 environment. They can handle continuous usage and are well-suited for tasks like file sharing, backup, and centralizing data storage.
On the other hand, WD Red Pro hard drives are targeted toward power users and businesses facing rapidly growing data. These drives are suitable for tasks like data-intensive applications, virtualization, and multi-user access scenarios.
With that in mind, let’s look at the key differences in their capabilities.
Capacity
WD Red Plus hard drives come in a range of capacities to accommodate diverse storage needs, starting from 1TB and increasing to 14TB. This flexibility allows users to choose the capacity that aligns with their storage demands and budget constraints.
WD Red Pro hard drives offer even larger capacities compared to the WD Red Plus models, starting from 2TB and increasing to 22TB. This makes them ideal for businesses needing ample storage space for extensive file collections and data-intensive applications. Larger capacities also enable users to scale their storage infrastructure to meet future demands.
The different options allow users to choose the best drive size for the volume of data they need to store.
©Western Digital Corporation / public domain – License
Disk Speed
The WD Red Plus hard drives are designed with a disk speed of 5,400 RPM. This speed strikes a balance between energy efficiency and performance, making them well-suited for SMB NAS applications. It also allows for reliable data access and transfer speeds, making these drives suitable for day-to-day file sharing, and backup tasks.
In contrast, WD Red Pro hard drives run at a higher disk speed of 7,200 RPM. This makes these drives ideal for more demanding tasks that require quicker data access. WD Red Pro drives can handle data-intensive applications, multiple-user access, and virtualization scenarios much more efficiently than WD Red Plus.
Power Efficiency
Despite their hard drives running at higher speeds, WD Red Pro outperforms WD Red Plus in terms of power efficiency.
This advantage is due to the implementation of HelioSeal technology, where the Red Pro drives are filled with helium gas and securely sealed, reducing vibrations caused by air turbulence. This stability enables increased capacity and prevents debris from entering the chassis.
In comparison, WD Red Plus hard drives do not utilize HelioSeal technology. Instead, their hard drives feature a breathing hole to equalize pressure. This opening allows dust particles to enter and settle within the hard drive, increasing the chances of failure over time.
Consequently, WD Red Pro’s HelioSeal technology makes it more efficient than WD Red Pro and more long-lasting.
Warranty
WD Red Plus hard drives come with a 3-year limited warranty, whereas WD Red Pro hard drives come with a 5-year limited warranty.
The longer warranty period of WD Red Pro hard drives further emphasizes their suitability for business and enterprise-level applications where data integrity and continuous operation are top concerns.
Noise Level
While WD Red Pro outperforms WD Red Plus in every other regard, it’s worth noting that the WD Red Pro hard drives are louder during operation. While this might be noticeable in close proximity, it’s not a significant issue for many users.
WD Red Plus drives spin more quietly, providing a less noticeable operational noise. However, this should not be a top criterion for selecting the best hard drives for your setup.
The History of WD Red Plus and Pro
In 2012, Western Digital introduced the Red series of hard disk drives tailored for network-attached storage devices. While Red was originally developed with individuals in mind, the product line was later expanded to include both WD Red Plus and WD Red Pro, which cater to users with more robust needs.
Over time, Red hard drives have undergone tech upgrades, switching from conventional magnetic recording (CMR) to shingled magnetic recording (SMR). Although this increased storage capacity, it did lead to some performance issues in RAID configurations.
To address these concerns, Western Digital reorganized its Red hard drives, optimizing them for RAID configurations. Now, WD Red Plus and WD Red Pro both offer predictable performance using CRM recording technology.
Most recently, Western Digital’s HelioSeal technology made it possible to further expand the limits of WD Red Pro hard drives. This is a particularly exciting advancement since these hard drives last longer, store more data, and use less energy.
©NMStudio789/Shutterstock.com
WD Red Plus vs. Pro: 7 Must-Know Facts
- WD Red Plus hard drives are suitable for file sharing, backup, and centralizing data storage.
- WD Red Pro hard drives are for power users dealing with rapidly growing data.
- WD Red Pro’s larger capacities enable scalable storage solutions.
- WD Red Pro’s higher disk speed makes it a better option for quicker data access, data-intensive applications, multiple-user access, and virtualization scenarios.
- WD Red Pro’s implementation of HelioSeal technology makes it more power-efficient and durable.
- WD Red Pro hard drives are slightly louder than WD Red Plus hard drives.
- WD Red Pro’s longer warranty period is ideal for critical applications.
- 4TB
- 5,400 RPM
- SATA 6 Gb/s
- CMR
- 256MB cache
- 3.5 inches
- 2TB
- 7,200 RPM
- SATA 6 Gb/s
- CMR
- 64MB cache
- 3.5 inches
WD Red Plus vs. Pro: Which One is Better? Which One Should You Use?
Ultimately, we highly recommend opting for WD Red Pro over WD Red Plus for your NAS storage setup.
Despite being targeted at users addressing rapidly growing data storage needs, WD Red Pro is a suitable option for various NAS setups. Although WD Red Pro is slightly more costly than WD Red Plus, this price difference pales in comparison to the difference in performance.
WD Red Pro’s higher capacities, faster disk speed, longer lifespan, extended warranty, and superior power efficiency make it the better choice.
While one drawback of WD Red Pro is its slightly noisier operation, this should not be a major concern for most users, as the benefits it provides far outweigh this minor inconvenience.
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